compact .45

This is a discussion on compact .45 within the Defensive Carry Guns forums, part of the Defensive Carry Discussions category; look up the new Kahr PM45. supposed to be available June 2007. very flat.
I have compact XD .45 and extremely pleased with it.
dave...

“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.” James DeanPhil (NRA Member and Vietnam Vet)
------------- My CCW ----------------No Guns Here Boss
I gave them to the naked Pigmy's in New Guinea

Who carries a compact .45? I mean one that is small easy to conceal and shoot. What I’m looking for is a step up from my J frame and smaller than my XD.

Any advice?

I have a Colt 1911 Officers model with 3.5" barrel and a Para P-12 which is same as the Colt but with 12 round magazine and wider grip.

Both are small guns. The Colt is thin, the Para is fat but both conceal well. I wish I had them in the alloy frames but I can handle the extra weight of the all steel fine. The Colt is a little easier to wear for longer periods though.

To my mind it is wholly irresponsible to go into the world incapable of preventing violence, injury, crime, and death. How feeble is the mindset to accept defenselessness. How unnatural. How cheap. How cowardly. How pathetic.” - Ted Nugent

Sig P220 Carry

I used and cary the Sig P220 Carry, it's compact, concealable
and shoots real nice........good recoil and very accurate. I also
have the crimson trace laser grips on it which enhances
my shooting greatly.....I would consider this combination....

Police Defensive Tactics, Firearms, Carbine Rifle and Taser Instructor
Glock Armorer
NRA Life MemberIt is better to have your gun and not need it, than to need it and not have it!You cannot choose the conditions for a gunfight, so train in all conditions!

Actually...

Originally Posted by 1man

Also have a Para P-12, same size as P245 but hold twice as many rounds.

The Para is thicker thru the slide and the butt is well.... TWICE as thick.

Additionally, I wouldn't own one. I fired three different P12's during an IDPA match a couple of years ago. It was at the end of the match and we were all on the line playing with the new toys we'd all gotten for Christmas and wanted to share.

So I cranked off a round with my friend's P12....and had an FTF instantly. Changed mags and it happened AGAIN. Then another buddy stepped forward and said: Here TRY MINE and so I did. First round popped and the second...FTF.

And Another person with a brand new P12 stepped forward to offer me his new piece and it happened AGAIN. Now there was chaos. A lot of folks opined that it MUST BE ME. So they checked my style...to see if there was a problem with my shooting technique. I'm an NRA Instructor and so are most of them....and it wasn't that.

Then other folks started shooting those P12's and it happened to THEM, too.

Meanwhile the owners of these guns were all yelling:

It was working perfectly...I SWEAR! Until HE touched it! Pointing at ME.

To this day, whenever I want to try out a new toy they all YELL at me to go away 'cuz they don't their new carry gun CURSED. But there are durn sure a whole lot fewer Para owners in that group. At the time I owned a P10 (original, not Warthog) and was having the same problems constantly. A real Jam-A-Matic. I traded that at the next gunshow. Against the advice of club members, I traded it for a Springfield Micro.....and had EXACTLY the same problems with that.

Leading to my assertion that when the 1911 shrinks below a barrel length of 4.25 inches the design becomes somewhat flawed. I have both a Gov't 1911 and a Commander 1911. Those guns hum all day long no matter what. This only holds true with the 1911 design. It's not true for the Glock and it's not true for the Sig or the XD or anything EXCEPT the 1911s.

I wrote to Jeff Cooper about the problem a few years ago. We exchanged letters and he agreed with me. He even made it the subject of a column in his "Cooper's Corner" articles he did for Guns & Ammo, before his regretable passing.

Anyway, I learned my lesson. I traded that micro at a show for a Sig P245 + $100. Literally the BEST deal I've ever made in my life for a firearm. I told the dealer of my problems with the micro and he didn't care. Said he'd "move it" during the same show at a healthy profit. That Sig has never given me any problems, ever.

Speaking to brand reliability Para can't touch Sig. I think there must be a reason that so many agencies choose them: Navy SEALs, Sky Marshals and a lot of other fed agencies (right, Fed wif a sig?) as well as the Texas Rangers.

P12

I have a P12, and the only time I have had any trouble with it is if I take it to the range several times without cleaning it. It has never failed to eject, but if the chamber is dirty, it will fail to load the first round. I use it for carry, to keep from messing up my commander.

I don't know what to say. I own a Kimber Ultra CDP II, and it has performed flawlessly. Zero malfunctions from new out of the box. But then, I really don't have function problems with any autopistol I shoot. EX, maybe you got a karma problem or something..